Public Supervisors and Reflectors: Role Fulfillment of the Chinese Peoples Congress Deputies in the Market Socialist Era

Abstract

This paper analyses the role fulfilment of Chinese people's congress deputies in the reform era. It argues the role fulfilments have changed in the 1990s. First, Chinese legislators have conducted three roles, i.e., supervision, reflection, and policy-providing, and regarded the first two as their dominant roles. This implies that deputies act mainly as public supervisors and reflectors rather than "regime agents." Second, deputies' role fulfilments have differentiated depending on their social backgrounds. Deputies from worker and peasant backgrounds tend to act as reflectors and supervisors, while deputies with intellectual backgrounds and some official deputies are more orientated to policy-providing. Private entrepreneurs and businesspersons who become deputies are more interested in exemplary leadership and economic roles, the closest role of "regime agents." Finally, the power from below —- deputies and the public —- will be the main force in the Chinese legislative development, and resultantly Chinese legislatures will be more representative than now.